Question

Gond Art is a tribal art. It has been developed and preserved by the Gond tribal people

residing largely in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha

States of India. From their traditional tales and mythology, we learn that they have lived in India

for thousands of years even before the other inhabitants came here. The Gondi language is

similar to Telugu, a Dravidian Language.

Gond art has spread mainly in Central India. Originally, people used to draw pictures on

the earthen walls of their houses. Most folk arts involve natural techniques of preparing colours

and use of several mediums. They are transferred from generation to generation in a smoothly

flowing process. Gond art is no exception to this. A house decorated with beautiful pictures creates

a pleasant atmosphere. Also, art is a medium of recording and preserving what is seen.

In folk arts, you yourself prepare the ‘canvas’ – the surface on which to draw and the

colours with which you draw. That is why creating folk art is a very enriching experience. This

richness is reflected in the choice of their medium. In the days of past, several things in nature

such as soils of different shades, the juice of plants, leaves, tree bark, flowers, fruits and

even things like coal and cow-dung were used to prepare colours. The different colours, various

textures and patterns were used year after year lending a simplicity to the art. When we see

these pictures, we realise that a picture drawn this way or the other can look equally beautiful.

What a deep thought this art conveys – and so easily!

In the Gond style of art, we see that the outlines may vary a little from artist to artist but

the designs that fill it make the whole picture look lively and attractive. The designs include

simple textures achieved using dots, straight lines, dotted lines, curvy shapes and circles.

Special attention is given to the choice of various colours so that total effect is amazing and

beautiful.

In today’s age of commercialisation many men have taken up Gond art. But the roots

of folk arts probably lie in women’s daily chores like cleaning and decorating the house,

dealing with natural colours in the course of cooking and in their leisure time activities.

B3a) Give another word for the following from the passage.
i) race: _____ ii)citizen:________

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Answer 1

race=run

citizen=national